Samsung today announced the world’s first 5G modem, the Exynos Modem 5100. The modem is fully compliant with the 3GPP specification of 5G-NR and is built on the 10nm fabrication process to make it power efficient.

Apart from 5G network support, the modem also supports older radio technologies including 4G, LTE, 3G, and 2.5G.

The Exynos 5100 is capable of a maximum downlink speed of 2Gb/s in sub-5GHz settings and up to 6Gbps in mmWave settings. On 4G networks, the modem is capable of a maximum downlink speed of 1.6Gbps.

Samsung expects to make the Exynos 5100 modem available to customers by the end of 2018. If anything, it is likely that we will see this modem being used in Samsung’s first 5G phone due to launch next year.

Our Take

Before you get too excited about Samsung launching a flagship smartphone with 5G connectivity next year, it ‘s important to note that just like with 4G smartphones years ago, the first 5G capable smartphones are going to be relatively thick and have poor battery life. Plus, major network carriers in the U.S. are yet to roll out 5G networks and even when they do, the coverage is going to be spotty at best.

Nonetheless, 5G is going to open up access to a different level of applications and games, and the high bandwidth and low latency offered by it will greatly benefit AR/VR headsets.